on the bookshelf

 

Helga's Diary by Helga Weiss.
I picked this up on a whim because I enjoy books about WW2. Can't accuse me of being too cheery! It's written by a girl who survived life in multiple concentration camps during the war and eventually made it out with her mother. It was so hard for me to get through not because it was sad (although it was), but because the writing was difficult to follow. I assume if someone read my diary they'd think the same thing, but I don't want my diary published so it doesn't matter. The timeline was confusing and it filled with words like haftlingsnummer and tagesbefehl. I've gotten to the point where I don't finish books I dislike, but I felt like if she could survive what she did the least I could do was finish the book. I was very impressed with the good attitude Helga had the entire time. I don't know that I would be as cheerful.

GI Brides: The Wartime Girls Who Crossed the Atlantic for Love by Duncan Barett and Nuala Calvi.
I LOVED this book. It was everything I hoped it would be and more. It tells the stories of four British girls who dated and eventually married American soldiers during, you guessed it, World War 2. The American soldiers showed up when most of the British men were gone and wooed the ladies. As someone who married a soldier and admittedly has a slight obsession with them, I would have been BESIDE MYSELF to have an abundance of men in uniform trying to get my attention. GIDDY WITH DELIGHT. The stories follow the women as they travel to America and attempt to make a life here.

Home by Julie Andrews.
I'm listening to the audio version and it's read by Julie herself. If only she would be the voice on the gps I wouldn't mind getting lost nearly as much. I didn't know Julie is British, not American. Am I the only one who didn't know that? No wonder she did such a good job playing a British nanny. It's a very well written story with lots of details which I enjoy since I'm nosy. It includes snippets of her singing and is delightful in every way. I'd like to add Julie to my list of people I'd like to text.




Linking up with Steph and Jana